From rhino wars to the battle for Ras Lanuf, stunning images from the World Press Photo Exhibition

The World Press Photo Exhibition returns to Southbank Centre, bringing together award-winning photographs from around the world which capture the most powerful, moving and sometimes disturbing images of the year.

Supported by Investec, World Press Photo is the premier annual international competition in press photography. Exhibited without censorship in 50 countries all over the world, the World Press Photo Exhibition offers an international showcase for all of the competition's prize-winning entries, and is considered by many to set a standard in the field of photojournalism.

This year, subject matters include the Arab Spring - from demonstrators in Tahir Square to Libyan rebels fighting during the uprising against Colonel Gaddafi. There are photos from the aftermath of the Japanese earthquake and tsunami, and from the Norwegian massacre on Utøya island.

Now in its 55th year, 101,254 images were submitted to the 2012 contest by 5,247 photographers from 124 different countries. This year's exhibition contains 169 photographs and is comprised of the year's winning photo, together with award-winning images from each of the nine contest categories.